Marthasville installing digital upgrades at city water, sewer hubs

Posted 1/4/22

The city of Marthasville is installing digital monitoring and control systems at the city well house and sewer pumps to better manage those utilities and improve response to equipment failures.

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Marthasville installing digital upgrades at city water, sewer hubs

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The city of Marthasville is installing digital monitoring and control systems at the city well house and sewer pumps to better manage those utilities and improve response to equipment failures.

The board of aldermen voted on Dec. 16 to pay about $22,500 to provider Municipal Equipment Company for the digital systems to be installed at the water and sewer stations.

Mayor David Lange explained that the equipment records information about the daily operations of automated systems, as well as providing phone alerts when the system detects a failure or water levels get too high or low. All of this information will be accessible remotely from a smart phone.

Notably, at the city’s current primary water supply well, the digital upgrades will also allow for remote control for when the automated system isn’t functioning correctly.

“(City officials) will be able to turn the well on and off with your cell phone,” Lange explained. “If the tank (level) is down, you can turn the well on. You could be in Branson, Missouri, and get your phone and turn the well on.”

As another example, Lange said sewer pumps are at risk of overheating or failing when rainwater gets into the sewer during heavy rains. The monitoring systems will allow for better management of that problem and alerts when something is wrong, Lange said. He added that daily management of utilities are a lot easier when you can check their status all at once on a phone, rather than having to visually inspect each site in person.

“We can spend an hour-and-a-half every day just checking on well houses and lift stations,” Lange said.

Following the first year after installation, Lange said the digital systems will require an annual payment of $1,900 to Municipal Equipment for continued upkeep.

Similar digital control systems will also be installed at Marthasville’s new water supply well north of Hiawatha Street, which is scheduled for construction in 2022.

Aldermen said they believe the digital monitoring upgrades are an important tool to protect the quality of the city’s water supply and prevent sewer overflow events that have happened in the past.

“You can stay on top of these things before the problem actually happens,” commented Alderman Chris DeVore.

Marthasville Board of Aldermen

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